26 December, 2016

Minimalism as in Small Objects

As we say goodbye to year 2016, this Golden Brass Pot is probably one of my year end posts. Personally, I cant wait to see the end of 2016. This year hasn't been great for me and I am eagerly looking forward to New Year 2017. Starting next year I would be taking out more time to take photographs, upgrade my Camera Gear and I would try and focus more on the visual appeal of the pictures.

I had also mentioned earlier, that I would be posting more variety under the Minimalism Category.

The above photo of the Golden Brass Pot falls under the Minimalism as in Small Objects category, which earlier had only 8 Minimalist Photos and the count increases to 9 with this post. To see all the Minimalist Photographs under this category of Minimalism, click HERE

A word on the Composition

The Golden Brass Pot has been shot from a distance, so as to make it look small in size. Also, I have placed it on the top right corner of the frame, thereby leaving ample negative space on the left.

Minimalism as Less Elements

As you can see, my only subject here is the "Dry Yellow Leaves" and the metal fence in repetition is just to offer support to the main subject. Hence, we can classify this Minimalist Photo under the "Minimalism as Less Elements" category of Types of Minimalism in Photography.

I have taken this shot from my Canon 50mm f1.4 prime lens. Such shots would turn out better if you use a Macro Lens. The Bokeh or the Background blur that you see would be softer and creamier especially if you shoot on a Full Frame Camera.

A Macro Lens and a Full Frame Camera is on my list of buys for the Year 2017. Right now I use this Camera: Camera Kit

Minimalism and Nature is a Wonderful theme to shoot. Go out to a nearby garden and try your hands on it. I am sure you would enjoy it.

PS: If you like the above photo and want to hang it framed in your house then you can buy it from this link - BUY Now (Ships Worldwide)OR - you can have a look at the complete sales gallery here: Buy Minimalist Photos

03 December, 2016

Minimalism as Less Elements

This photo took long time to be here. The place is Jawahar Kala Kendra, Coffee House open area. It began with me approaching this open door 5-6 times trying to compose a decent shot.

The Two Golden Door Knobs always kept me interested.

The first time I looked at the door was about 6 months back. I visit this place very often but I just could not come up with any shot with the door earlier. Only last Sunday, was the day I finally got the shot that I wanted.

So what changed last week, was my question to self?

Recently, I paused the "Learn Minimalism" Instagram page and many other social media accounts. Well, that gave me some free mind space, say about after a year. As soon as my mind was left with less clutter to handle, I was back in flow with my compositions.

I shot this vertical so that I could use the colorful lines in the background in a creative way. Both the crop and the placement of the Bicycle Tyre on the bottom, is purposefully kept very tight. That kind of placement makes the viewer to take about one second to realize what the actual subject is. Once the viewer gives you his first second, he will surely spend more time on the photograph.

12 November, 2016

Minimalism as Less Elements

I am back with another Minimalist Photograph. I keep it easy these days and post Photographs only when I have some spare time.

Back in 2014-15, I used to pressurize myself to do X number of blog posts / photographs a month. But, I realize that I am an artist and I should focus more on the purity of my expression and on the composition of the Photos that I click, rather than on "How to run a Blog".

Focusing too much on the marketing aspect of the blog had started to affect my Photo Compositions. Therefore, I scaled back, both on the number of posts and on Social Media marketing.

A lot happened in the last few days. Donald Trump won the US elections, the Stock markets fell, Gold prices tumbled, there was a ban on Rs 500 and Rs 1000 currency notes in India etc etc.

Basically, a Minimalist like me ended up watching the Television for hours and got overloaded with News.

Today, to take a break from this, I decided to open my Photographs Folder, Edited a photo and started writing this blog post. A nice escape from all the noise.

Prior to writing this post, my Television was on. It is still on but No channel is displayed. I have pressed the TV/Av button to turn the screen Blank, Black and Silent. All that I can hear, is just the noise of the ceiling fan running. It is that peaceful, that calm. I am disconnected with the chaos of the world right now. Even my Mobile phone is a good two feet away from me for the last half an hour.

I am here, with you all and trust me it is blissful.

"Less is more", "Silence is beautiful". are not just words. When you encounter such a state or feeling, you get immersed into it. You become a part of it.

By now it must be clear to you, that This post is my Escape from the "Noise of the world" today. And that is one of the major reasons I chose this "Spiral Stairs" photograph. It too, offers an escape.

Just look at how the stairs disappear to the top. Inviting you to climb up and Run away from the noise into open blue skies. To a place of "Peace and Calm", to a place of "Stillness".

OK now, let back to the MINIMALIST Composition

The above photo falls under the Minimalism as Less Elements category of Minimalist Photography.

As you can see above, the Spiral Stairs are positioned Diagonally and at the same time are also in the Center of the Frame. This is a way out from the regular rule of thirds.

If the Spiral Stairs were not tilted and were vertically placed right in the center of the frame at 90 degrees, the composition would have looked odd. Centered compositions are less appealing to the human brain.

The Tilt, made the top of the staircase bend towards the right, and the bottom of the Stairs fill the space on the left. This, kind of compensated for the rule of thirds and the subject is both, placed in the center and NOT.

Minimalism as Less Elements

Because I am posting more of Colorful Minimalism lately, here is another Picture that depicts pure color i.e the color Pink.

To keep the image Minimalist, I have given the Pink Color a lot of space in the frame. Also note that following the Rules of Minimalism, I have carefully chosen this particular Electric Meter as it is placed on a Simple Geometric shape or A Square.

That property, makes the picture even more Minimal, other than the Negative space and the Less Elements aspect.

Make sure you don't end up being too close to the subject in such shots. Distance is key here. Distance will make sure that the subject looks surrounded or engulfed by the Pink Color.

Another Detail that I would like to point out in the composition is, The Curved Blue Cable going to the right and its respective shadow. Without this cable in the frame, the photograph would have lacked the punch it needed to be here in the blog post.

Hope you enjoyed the observations.

For any questions or queries you can get in touch with me via the Contact page.

05 November, 2016

Minimalism Type: Zeroism

Good Evening People. "I hope this POST finds you in the best of your health and spirit." If not, then you better be exercising. Ahh, did I just mention exercise?

Yes I did. I used to avoid exercising as I am a lazy fellow or lets say, I was. Lately, I have discovered Walking.

Although it is easy to do but at the same time it has huge benefits. Don't believe me? Try and google it for yourself. When I did, I was amazed to find out that by walking just 30 minutes a day, one can prevent so many diseases. Well "Simplicity works" you see !!!

And that's precisely the reason I mentioned this today.

Being a Minimalist, I have now shifted my attention to the simple things in life that we tend to ignore,

just like how we cannot spot a Minimalist Subject, despite it being right in front of our eyes. It all requires practice and a sense of observation. But before you practice, you must begin somewhere right? The first step to it is "Intent" and trust me all you need to do is "Develop the Intent to observe simple things. The rest will follow."

That said, lets get back to the Minimalist Photograph

As mentioned there, the above photo does not reflect any real world object/subject at first glance or even at a closer look.

The Viewer is kept guessing. The eye keeps moving. Yet this photo is a Minimalist Photograph. You may want to call it Maximalist but I am very clear about it that it is Minimalist and I can explain.

The only subject here is the juxtaposition between colorful curves versus the vertical lines. That's it. This, in total is one element (or maybe you can call it two).

The subject is actually a frosted finish plastic house gate, lit by the suns rays. The photograph has been taken around 4 pm in the afternoon in the harsh sun.

You can also call the above photograph as an abstract photograph. But we, The Minimalists tend to call most pictures Minimal, till the time the elements are less and there is some bit of symmetry, geometry, logic or explanation in them.

03 November, 2016

Today I was shuffling through old Minimalist Pictures of mine in the computer. I stumbled upon one particular album from where I had edited and posted two Black and White Minimalist Photos on the blog.

Last time, when I had edited these photographs, I was not able to edit them in color the way I wanted to, hence I had turned them into black and white. But, today I thought why not give it a re-try. Today, I finally was able to edit them in color and was pretty happy with the results. A lot of people like Black and White Photographs but some only like colored ones.

With this post, I have made sure that I keep both of them happy :)

Long time ago, I had read a photography tip somewhere online and it said "Never delete a photograph ever, you may like it on a later date." I followed that advice and it worked wonders.

Another reason why I chose color today could be, that subconsciously I must be preempting a good phase in life, therefore an inclination towards color. Lets see if that happens.

Meanwhile, I am still recouping from energy that I lost from last month's Lunar Eclipse on September 16-17.

Coming back to the composition, I will not talk much about it as I had already done that in the Black and White versions.

Abandoned Car Location: Near Jaleb Chowk, Jaipur City.

As you can see, I have taken the front portion of the Abandoned Car and used it to cut the frame diagonally. The blue and white textured wall adds to the Visual. The shadows, you see on the wall, as well as on the car, are coming from the metal fence on the left.

Please Note: The photo is a bit "Maximally Minimal" rather than being Minimally Minimal. But, it is still Minimal :)

Abstract Photographers might like to call this an Abstract Photograph, but we, The Minimalists call it Minimal till the time it represents real world objects (or when the real world is identifiable) and as long as it falls under one of the 8 Types of Minimalism in Photography.

02 October, 2016

Minimalism as Less Elements

I always wanted to shoot these lamps. I cross them every Sunday and the opposite direction of the two lamps, always used to intrigue me.

But, somehow I never clicked them. Today, was different. It was different because, today these lamps were Split by a White Minimalist Cloud and of course that's why I titled this post as "The Cloud Split".

The moment I spotted the cloud, I knew I had to take this shot. I dint have much time, as I was on my scooter and I had stopped right in the middle of the traffic. The cloud too was moving fast. I spent about 4 minutes on the shot and the cloud happened to move off-center twice in that time period.

Turning to black and white wasn't easy and I took me quite a bit of editing to get the grays and whites right. And that resulted in a bit of grains in the shot, but I do not mind them, especially because in Black and White Photography/Minimalism "All is OK".

22 September, 2016

Minimalism as Less Elements

A few days back, I went to The Akshardham Temple, Jaipur with my mother and her sister. I had recommended this place to them. The architecture here, is quite intriguing and the place also has a well-maintained garden right opposite the temple stairs.

We arrived a little early, at about 5.40 pm. I inquired with the gatekeeper about what time does the Main Aarti ( prayer) takes place everyday. He told us that there are Two Aarti's (prayers), one at 7 pm and the other one at 8 pm.

We had plenty of time, so we decided to take a walk in the garden and took some casual cellphone pictures. It was still only 6.15 pm and we had plenty of time left for the Main Prayer to begin.

There is a small eating place inside the vicinity, towards the right of the Temple. We decided to have our evening snacks there to kill some more time. I had been to this Temple before. So, I knew there was another place right below the Main Temple, where worship takes place.

I told my mother while we were eating, that I shall quickly go and check, if that portion of the temple is still open like last time.

While I was on my way, I spotted this water puddle, but to my disappointment I could not see a decent reflection in it. I proceeded to the place downstairs.

On my way back, I again had a look at this water puddle from a distance. This time, I could see the reflection of a palm tree placed in the garden, in it. Right behind the Tree, there was this beautiful lamp that you see in the reflection. So, I became both curious and excited. I wanted to find out whether with my feet movement, I'd be able to get the reflection of that Garden Lamp in the water puddle.

After a lot of adjustment and bending and trying to look with one eye closed, I finally found the reflection of the Garden Lamp being casted in the water puddle. I did not had the camera with me that point of time. It was on the table at which I was having my evening snack with my mother.

Since light had started to fade fast, I knew I had little time to go back, bring the camera, punch in the settings and Click the photo. So, I rushed to get my camera back and finally took this shot.

Initially, I tried using a faster shutter speed and a lower ISO, but that did not work well as the light was fading.

Lets also talk about the Classification:

a) The Floor

b) The Water Reflection Of Garden Lamps.

Also, there is plenty of negative space in the frame which adds to the beauty.

Please Note: I have flipped the photo upside-down to make it more appealing. Reflection Photos generally are taken straight first to adjust for rule of thirds and to balance the composition. Later, they are Flipped. It may sound a little tricky, but you will get it right with some practice.

To get a clearer idea of what I mean, turn your cellphone upside down. If, you are viewing this picture via the computer, then right click, and "Save Photo" and then Flip it.

Minimalism as Simple Geometry

Here, you can see a blue one. And I hope one day, I collect as many different colored Squares as I can. Ok, lets talk more about the composition.

This photo was taken right outside the exit gate of Jantar Mantar Jaipur. As you can see, I have used a lot of negative space in the photograph. I filled that space with the blue sky, and placed my subject at the extreme bottom right. This, is a perfect example of both: Minimalism as Less Elements and Minimalism as Simple Geometry Photography. (Simple Geometry being "The Blue Square"). It is a matter of choice as to what you want to categorize this photo under.

This is a Look-up Minimalist Photograph. By Look-up I mean, "Looking up in the sky, trying to find photographic subjects." This kind of Photography is really very interesting.

You wont find out, until you try it for yourself. Trust me, the results are going to be really interesting.

If you have had clicked such photographs before or if you are going to give such photography a try in future, make sure to leave a link to that photo below. It would be nice to have a look at your creativity.

Don't worry about not having a zoom lens etc. I took this photograph from a Canon 50mm Prime Lens. You can even try using the wide angle Mobile Phone Camera Lens, to Explore your Creativity.

18 September, 2016

Minimalism as Less Elements

I spotted thisOne Way Traffic Sign right in front of Jantar Mantar (Jaipur) entrance gate.

I parked my bike under the sign and this was the first shot of my Minimalist Photography photo-walk today. I mostly take photos from my standard Canon DSLR Kit, but this particular shot was taken by my Samsung Galaxy S6 SmartPhone Camera.

The reason why I chose to take this picture via my cellphone and not via the DSLR was simple. I needed a wide angle lens to achieve the kind of composition I had planned in my mind. The subject was way too close and I had my Canon 50mm prime 1.4 lens on, on my DSLR. I do not own a wide angle lens. If I had one, I would have used that.

As you can see, I am right under The One Way Traffic Sign. I was looking at it at an elevation of approximately 70 degrees. I bent down on my knees to begin with, but that wasn't sufficient. So I decided to sit on the road. Trust me, it was fun. More so, because the people around started to observe me. I am sure they were all wondering... What was so special about this Traffic Sign? that they had missed and I did not.

Anyways, lets get back to the Minimalist Photograph. I took about three shots from my Cellphone and finally I was happy with one. Usually, I edit cellphone Minimalist shots with the Phone's default editing app. But, this photo, I transferred from my cellphone to my Laptop and then edited it. I did so to better enhance the contrast and the overall saturation. A hint of sharpness too, was added.

The Classification: The photo falls under Minimalism as Less Elements category.

14 September, 2016

Minimalism as Simple Geometry

It has been a while since I last updated the blog. To be frank, I was on a break. Now, I feel better, both physically and mentally. While on the break, I spent most of my time meeting my friends and talking to them about spiritualism and philosophy. But, lets keep that aside for the moment. I shall do a post later on those topics.

well, what you see above, in the Minimalist Photo is basically "Architectural Lines Tapering in" towards the end.

This place is near the Govind Devji temple, Jaipur. I had been to this place before in the past but this time I wanted to shoot something completely different. So, instead of taking the picture from the front or from a 45 degree side angle, I went really up close to the side of the wall this time. I was nearly touching it. This helped me to Taper the Two Big Lines in the frame.

The first one being, The Zigzag Line on the top, and the second one, created the beautiful right angled triangle at the bottom. The extreme side angle view, helped me to make these lines converge and also to create a lot of depth in the frame. The Classification:

The photo falls under the Minimalism as Simple Geometry category of Minimalist Photography. The Simple Geometry being "Just the intention to show lines in the frame".

I
own a Samsung Galaxy S6 Mobile Smartphone and all of these 30 Minimalist photos
have been clicked by it. I think the camera is decent. I am waiting to get my hands on to the new Samsung Galaxy S7.

To find out which type of Minimalism each photo falls under, hover the mouse pointer over the photo and wait for 1-2 seconds. The Type of Minimalism will pop-up.

Note: I
did post processing using the phone's default software. In some photos, the Adobe Photoshop Express Free App for Android
phones, available at the Google Play Store, was also used along with the default phone editor.

PS: These photos are not available for purchase. Have a look at DSLR Photos here: Buy Minimalism